Everybody works hard, but does everyone get the work done?

In the last five years I’ve noticed that people have their own way of functioning and getting the work done. No matter how you try & fit your team to work according to your time table they’ll only give their best if given the freedom to do things the way they want.

Giving freedom to have own style of work is as important as giving freedom to think. They both hold equal importance.

Today we’re living in a world where speed of getting anything done with utmost efficiency and in lesser time is increasing. Yet, many companies focus on getting maximum work out of their employees as they go on glorifying late working hours, working weekends, more coffee on the table and everything that in true sense shouts inefficiency!

In my early days in advertising about seven years back, I was praised for being the hardest working employee.

I’m not proud.

I recall the day when the power went off in that office (startups) and everyone came out in the corridor chit chatting and giggling away. I sat on the stairs with my laptop finishing up an ORM report for my client.

That’s not hard-working. That’s silliness.

It only built up false expectation and I didn’t know I was digging my own grave. My out of choice behavior became a routine & I did not have a day off.

I learnt it the hard way, and today I manage my work within the time that I set for myself.

So, what really works for getting work done on time for most people?

Certainly not late hours! It’s the discipline and positive attitude.

I read a few things, got inspired by them, practiced them and that changed my work & personal life immediately.

I’m sharing the most important take away points that work every single time for everyone. You can apply it to yourself, your team or even for your organization. It works.

Working style, each to its own:

Everyone understands their most and least productive time of the day. They know at what time they can grasp more and function quickest. Allow yourself and your team to follow and maintain a routine that best suits them. Unless, obviously not if they take it for granted. A little guidance always helps the ones who don’t understand how freedom works.

Encourage one focused objective:

There’s only so much that one person can manage within a given time frame. And “multi-tasking” does not exist in the real world. The one who multi-tasks does not ever, let me stress that, ever gives their 100%.

If you ever jump to a task with an unfinished task at hand your mind will always be pre-occupied. The 20 minutes that you assign to an email, or those 2 hours you set aside for that presentation or even a 5 minute follow up call, is non-negotiable. No distraction, no smoke breaks, no social media. Nothing at all.

An early bird gets the most difficult work done easily:

Some of you might hate this recommendation because morning is not the best time for everyone. But the ones who wake up early every morning get a lot of difficult work off their tables sooner.

By the time others start their coffee, the early birds have already finished the most important and time consuming task of the day. That gives them a lot of time to read, strategize and enough time with family (and also Netflix) in the evening. If you’re not a morning person, I won’t push this on you. You can choose to work with your own style, but if you want to give early mornings a chance, you must.

Inspired from true life events of the founder & writer at clicksdaily.